Electronic systems, such as those used in aircraft, provide little warning before the occurrence of an operational issue. Further, unlike mechanical systems, the various components of an electronic system cannot be checked for wear and tear to determine when they should be removed or replaced. Thus, electronic systems are often subject to unscheduled maintenance which can result in higher costs of operation. With adequate warning of a potential operational issue or maintenance need, the costs associated with maintaining an electronic system can be reduced.
Many electronic systems use Built-in-Test to help diagnose the cause of an operational issue and take preventative actions. Built-in-Test comprises a series of tests that the electronic system can perform to determine whether it is functioning properly. One common issue with Built-in-Test is a high rate of false alarms. A false alarm occurs when one or more negative Built-in-Test results are generated and no operational issue with the electronic system is discovered. In addition, with highly integrated electronic systems, a single operational issue can lead to many negative Built-in-Test results. For example, a system bus that is not functioning properly may cause one or more negative test results in the various systems which are connected to it. Therefore, a single set of Built-in-Test results may include many negative Built-in-Test results that are unrelated to the operational state of the electronic system (e.g., because they are caused by false alarms or problems that are not related to the electronic system) making it difficult to identify those Built-in-Test results that are associated with an operational issue for an electronic system.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a system and method for analyzing multiple Built-in-Test error codes that are associated with electronic systems having operational issues with a known root cause to identify temporal relationships of Built-in-Test results that are indicative of that root cause. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.